EXPENSES: Decreases in net total assets. Expenses represent total cost of operations during a period, regardless of the timing of related expenditures. FEE: The payment for direct receipt of a public service by the party who benefits from the service. FISCAL YEAR: A twelve-month period of time used for budgeting, accounting, or tax collection purposes which may differ from a calendar year. Laguna Niguel operates on a July 1 to June 30 fiscal year. FIXED ASSETS: Assets of a long-term nature such as land, buildings, machinery, furniture, and other equipment. The City has defined such assets as those with an expected life in excess of one year and an acquisition cost in excess of $10,000. FINES AND FORFEITURES: Revenue collected by the City from the issuance of misdemeanor and infraction citations which are the result of vehicle code traffic violations and municipal code parking violations. FRANCHISE: A special privilege granted by a government permitting the continuing use of public property, such as City streets, and usually involving the elements of monopoly and regulation. FUNCTION: A group of related activities aimed at accomplishing a major service or regulatory program for which a government is responsible (e.g., public safety). FUND: An independent fiscal and accounting term used to record all financial transactions related to the specific purpose for which the fund was created. FUND BALANCE: The amount of financial resources available for use. Generally, this represents a summary of all the annual operating surpluses and deficits since the fund’s inception. FUND TYPE: The highest level in the City’s budget account structure. The level includes General, Special Revenue, Capital Projects, and Internal Service. Included in each Fund Type may be several funds. GANN LIMIT: A California ballot initiative adopted in 1980, and modified by Proposition 111 which passed in 1990, to limit the amount of tax proceeds state and local governments can spend each year. It now appears in California’s State Constitution as Article XIIIB. GENERAL FUND: The primary fund of the City used to account for all revenues and expenditures of the City not legally restricted as to use. GOVERNMENTAL FUND TYPES: Funds used to account for the acquisition, use and balances of expendable financial resources and the related current liabilities -- except those accounted for in proprietary funds and fiduciary funds. In essence, these funds are accounting segregations of financial resources. GRANT: Contributions or gifts of cash or other assets from another governmental or private entity to be used or expended for a specific purpose, activity, or facility. IMPACT FEES: Fees charged to developers to cover, in whole or in part, the anticipated cost of improvements that will be necessary as a result of the development (e.g., parks, sidewalks). INFRASTRUCTURE: Facilities on which the continuance and growth of a community depend, such as roads, water lines, sewers, public buildings, parks, and so forth. 121